February 2006 www.tehcc.org

Note: To submit an article for the newsletter, send an email to: Next Two Months TEHCC Celebrates 60th Anniversary Smokies North Shore Road APES/TEHCC Joint Winter Party A.T. Committee Changes Leadership Naming a Shelter and Providing a Tribute to Ray Hunt TEHCC Welcomes New Members Scheduled Hiking, Paddling, and Trail Maintenance Opportunities (Future) Special Activity and Trip Reports (Past) A.T. Section Maintenance and Special Project Reports (Past)

NEXT TWO MONTHSLeader

Feb 4 Steele Creek Park (Bristol,Tenn.)

B/3/C Vic Hasler 423-239-0388

Feb 10 APES/TEHCC Joint WinterParty

Fun Mike Morrow 423-245-8045

Feb 18 Hot Springs - Tanyard GapLoop

A/2/B Mary EllenRess

423-349-6536

Feb 24 Annual Maintenance Dinner Worthwhile Carl Fritz 423-477-4669Feb 25 Little Greenbriar Trail (SM900) A/3/B Garry Luttrell 423-239-9854Mar 4 Rich Mountain Loop (Smokies

Dayhike)B/2/B Neil Dotson 423-323-3493

For an explanation of the hike ratings, see Hiking Schedule.

TEHCC Celebrates 60th Anniversary!

The year 2006, marks the 60th anniversaryof TEHCC. As a way of celebrating, we areencouraging our members to hike our entireTEHCC A.T. maintenance section fromSpivey Gap, NC to Damascus, VA. (about130 miles). A special tee shirt will bedesigned and awarded to those whocomplete the whole section in 2006.Also, as a way of encouraging more

individuals to be hike leaders, a gift certificate from a local outdoors store will be awardedto those hike leaders who lead at least four hikes on the TEHCC section during the 2006calendar year.To be counted as an anniversary hike, a hike notice must be posted in the monthlynewsletter and a hike report written and submitted for publication in the newsletter. To beeligible for the tee shirt, your name must appear on the hike report printed in the TEHCCnewsletter. To be eligible for either of these awards, the hike must take place betweenJanuary 1, 2006 and December 31, 2006 and a hike report be submitted in time forpublication in the February 2007 TEHCC newsletter. The awards will be presented at theSpring 2007 TEHCC Dinner Meeting.To schedule hikes, please contact Neil Dotson, or phone (423-323-3493). Neil arrangeshikes quarterly, sending out a call for hikes for the coming quarter about 6 weeks inadvance; that's a good time to schedule a hike for the coming quarter, but Neil can addhikes at any time, and hikes beyond the coming quarter are always welcome.If you have questions, feel free to contact any member of the Steering Committee.TEHCC Steering Committee.So lets get out there and hike!

Smokies North Shore RoadJoe DeLoach reporting At the time the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP) was

formed, there was a road along the north bank of the Little TennesseeRiver in Swain County, North Carolina that ran west from Bryson Cityand connected some of the settlements and logging camps along

streams such as Hazel and Eagle Creeks. When Fontana Dam was constructed in theearly 1940's, the lake impoundment flooded this road. The forerunner of the U. S.Department of the Interior promised Swain County that a new road along the north shore ofFontana Lake would be built to replace the impounded old road. Construction on what hasbeen termed the North Shore Road was begun in the 1960's, but only a few miles werebuilt from Bryson City to around Noland Creek because of high cost and significantenvironmental impact (this section is often termed "The Road to Nowhere").A controversy over whether to build this road has simmered to this day. Advocates claimthat the federal government needs to fulfill its promise to the county and to descendents ofthe former residents to visit the graves of their ancestors, and tout the potential economicbenefits of opening more access to the Park to one of the poorer counties in western North

Carolina. Opponents cite projected costs to build the road of $500 million and possiblymuch more, the environmental damage and incursion into a largely primeval area thatwould result, other options that exist for the families to visit these areas, and offer analternative of a monetary settlement of $52 million to Swain County as a less expensive,less damaging, and more economically stimulating alternative. The Swain CountyCommission has voted in favor of the monetary settlement over the new road, but the U. S.representative for that district has much influence over the Interior Department budget andhas earmarked money for its possible construction. The GSMNP has issued a draftenvironmental impact statement listing the full construction, the monetary settlement, and ano action alternative among others. Generally these statements identify a preferredalternative, but in this case none was identified. Information on the draft environmentalimpact statement can be found on a GSMNP web site at Northshoreroad.info.Among the impacts this new road would have would be to the Appalachian Trail, whichcrosses Fontana Dam and then runs up an old road that would become part of the newone. The new road would also likely be visible from Shuckstack Fire Tower and possiblyother points along the Trail. For these reasons, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy isopposing construction of the new road and favors the monetary settlement to SwainCounty. This issue and the ATC position has been communicated to A.T.-maintainingclubs and a mechanism for comment is being established on the ATC web site atAppalachiantrail.org.The TEHCC A.T. Committee has discussed this issue and believes that Club membersand affiliates should be aware of the road proposal and the potential impact to theAppalachian Trail and GSMNP. The ATC web site above will provide a good source ofinformation on ongoing developments in this issue and how to comment if you should wishto do so. Public meetings which are scheduled around the Smokies in February will alsoprovide good avenues for comment. Information on these meetings can be found on theGSMNP web site, Northshoreroad.info.

Annual APES/TEHCC Joint Winter PartyFriday February, 10th 2006 (7:00pm – 11:00pm)

The 2006 annual APE’s Winter Party will be another joint party with our friends from theTennessee Eastman Hiking and Canoeing Club (TEHCC). The party will be at Eastman'sLodge.Ed Montgomery will present an exciting slide show on featuring a multi-day canoe trip onSan Juan River. It is sure to be entertaining.

San Juan River Trip 2005"Rivers and canyons are magical places. They are serene, beautiful, captivating on the one hand; they are stark,hostile, foreboding on the other. The river is moody. One day it is but a trickle, w hisper, as it plays in itsboulder-strew n bed; the next day it is a torrent, raging through the canyon, tripping its banks of sand, boulders,entire trees. But these are its privileges, here in the domicile of the mighty San Juan." - San Juan Canyons RiverGuide

Tw o parties of Apes traveled dow n the San Juan this past Fall and both experienced unique and memorabletrips. This slide show summarizes the events of one of those trips and makes an attempt to capture the beautyand rage of the magnif icent San Juan River. Older, retired, and somew hat w arped Apes may enjoy the humor as

w ell!

As in the past, we will have a covered dish dinner. The club will provide main dish, bread,soft drinks, ice, cups, plates, napkins, and eating utensils. Everyone should bring anappetizer, vegetable, salad, or desert, along with an appropriate serving utensil. Of course,it’s BYOB if desired. APE’s t-shirts, sweatshirts and stickers will be on sale. Start yourholiday shopping early this year! For questions, call Mike Morrow at (423) 245- 8045.We will have exciting whitewater videos. Feel free to bring any videos you have to watch.Bring your used gear to sell.So come on out and enjoy the fun, food and fellowship at the annual Joint APE’s/TEHCCWinter Party.Directions to Eastman's Lodge:If you know how to get to Bay’s Mountain Park, you know how to get there. When you get to the Y in the road that goes to Bay’sMountain Park to the lef t and Eastman Recreation area to the right, go right. The Lodge is on the lef t af ter you enter the recreationarea. You can’t miss it.If you do not know how to get to the park, follow these directions: Get to (I-181 or I-26) / I-81 split and go north tow ardKingsport. Exit the interstate at the Meadow view Parkw ay exit and make a lef t turn. You are now on Meadow viewParkw ay/Reservoir Rd. Follow the small brow n signs that direct you to Bay’s Mountain Park on Reservoir Rd. There w ill be a lotof curves in the road. Be sure not to veer of f Reservoir Rd. in the turns. Other roads connect to reservoir in a few of the turns.There w ill be a large sign directing you to take a right of f Reservoir to get to Bay’s Mountain Park. Take this right. You w ill come tothe Y in the road. Go right at the Y to enter the Eastman Recreation Area. The lodge is on the lef t af ter you enter the recreation

area.

A.T. Committee Changes LeadershipSubmitted by Steve PerriA.T. Committee Chair Steps Down as a Past One Steps Back InIt is with mixed emotions I step down as the TEHCC A.T. CommitteeChair. My term began in 1998, and after 8 yrs of service, I can say thatI have definitely grown in my knowledge of the cooperativerelationships by working with the USFS, ATC and other clubs and Ihave established a number of new friendships. I can also say that inmany ways I'm a little relieved to turn things over to Joe DeLoach forhis second term to carry on with the club's responsibilities. As I reflectback, there have been a number of "new challenges" the club has beeninvolved in over this time beginning with the washing out of the bridgesin Laurel Fork Wilderness, the winter rehabilitation project for RoundBald, the Putnam Mine, new cell towers near the trail corridor,proposed wind-powered generating farms, the reorganization of ATCand the 2005 biennial conference. So after all these changes andchallenges, what could happen next?

Steve Perri at Southern

Highlands 2005

In many ways I am fortunate and proud to have had the support and dedication of manyvolunteers; especially the members of the A.T. Committee and the retirees. Over theyears, our club's reputation has been improved in the trail community by our club's ability toput more hours in to trail maintenance and by conducting more community events. Thiscredit can be attributed to several key people including Bill Stowell for carrying on andexpanding our Adopt-a-trail program, Bob Peoples and Ed Oliver for starting andcoordinating the Hardcore Program and the ASU Fall orientation program. Bob continuesto recruit thru-hikers and college students to do volunteer work as a means of educatingusers of the trail of the need to put effort back in to the Trail since it needs TLC over time.

Our retirees also have done a tremendous amount of work over the years doing all kinds ofprojects on Tuesdays and on many other Saturdays. With all this support, we have beenable to take advantage of more Konnarock Crew time over the years requesting 3 to 5weeks per year whereas most clubs ask for 1-3 weeks per year. As we have been able tobolster all this work above and beyond our regular or traditional maintainer's level, we havebeen able to double the number of maintenance hours per year.The most satisfying part of my responsibilities has been working with the many dedicatedvolunteers and agency partners. Through my role as the A.T. Committee Chair, I relied veryheavily on the advice of former club leaders. In the absence of my responsibilities in thiscapacity, I would not have the opportunity to get to know people like Collins Chew, CarlFritz, Darrol Nickels, Ed Oliver, Bob Peoples and John Thompson. I would have especiallymissed the opportunities to get to know Frank Oglesby and Ray Hunt. Bruce Cunninghamwas "My Guy Monday thru Friday" doing lots of my leg work during my working daytimehours and facilitating a lot of the biennial planning. I have had the pleasure to work withMorgan Sommerville over the years and have learned a great deal from his outdoor ethics,philosophy and unique style working with others. My internal cross-check between ATCmatters and the club I have heavily relied upon Ray Hunt and Steve Wilson for lots of soundadvice. Within the USFS I have been fortunate getting to know and work with districtrangers Terry Bowerman, Candace Wyman, and Paul Bradley. Within ATC in HarpersFerry, I had the opportunity to work with the new Directors in planning for the biennialconference including Karen Kinney, Marty Bartels, and Mari Omland.So it is with great pleasure that I can say whew! The only regret that I have is that I wasn'table to get our Local Management Plan finished during my term. I do plan on working withSteve Wilson to put the finishing touches on it so we can circulate it for approval andhopefully post it on the website to make it more accessible. As I was preparing for thePutnam Mine deposition, I went back to our LMP for our historical policies and found this tobe a valuable resource. Hopefully we can put it in place again for any future challenges thatJoe DeLoach may have to refer to!

Naming a Shelter and Providing a Tribute to Ray HuntJoe DeLoach reportingThis summer, we will construct our first new shelter in 25 years, along the Elk RiverRelocation we opened a couple of years ago. This shelter has been badly needed asthere is currently a walk of about 20 miles between shelters. We have a location selected,a design approved, materials purchased, and workers lined up (though we can always usevolunteers - look for notices in the spring). But, we can't just call it "that new shelter" - weneed a name. We're soliciting Club members and affiliates for names. Although we havea couple of existing shelters named for individuals (Stan Murray, Clyde Smith), this practiceis discouraged in favor of place names on a map (such as No Business Knob andWatauga Lake) or other geographical or historic features (such as Overmountain Victoryand Double Springs). The new shelter is not located right at or very near a mountain top,gap, or major stream, so there is not an obvious name for it. If you'd like to offersuggestions, please contact Joe at 423-229-1602 or at .Although we aren't planning to name the new shelter after an individual, the A.T. Committee

strongly desires to establish a suitable tribute to Ray Hunt, who did so much for our Cluband for ATC. A couple of suggestions have been made. Ray pushed very hard andsuccessfully for a walkway to be added to the bridge over the Nolichucky River at Chestoa,and one suggestion was for a bronze plaque honoring Ray to be embedded in the concreteof the bridge and walkway where hikers could see it. Another suggestion was to utilize theForest Service information kiosk at Carvers Gap and have information about Ray andpossibly others that have made such substantial contributions to the A.T.; Stan Murray andFrank Oglesby come to mind. A third suggestion was to build a suitable memorial at thenew relocation in the open area on Cross Mountain. These suggestions aren't mutuallyexclusive, and we would welcome any others. We should consider permanence andprotection; unfortunately, vandalism is pretty common throughout our Trail section. Again, ifyou have ideas for a suitable tribute to Ray or want to cast a vote in favor of any of thesesuggestions, please contact Joe at the above telephone or e-mail address.

TEHCC Welcomes New Members

Bob HembreVitaly NazarovTony Norton

ShelleyStahlman

New members are eligible for a free dinner at the next Dinner Meeting.

Scheduled Hiking, Paddling and Trail MaintenanceOpportunities (Future)

For an explanation of the hike ratings, see Hiking Schedule.

Steele Creek Park Trails (Bristol, TN) February 4, 2006Leader: Vic Hasler, 423-239-0388;Rating: B/3/CSteele Creek Park is the third largest city park in Tennessee. Plans are to make acomplete circle of the park lake while going from the front entrance to the Rooster backentrance, including Hemlock Hollow, High Ridge, Lake Ridge, and Lakeside with possiblespur to Quarry Cave and Rock Cut trails. The total distance is estimated to be around 5miles at a leisurely pace. Meet at the Colonial Heights location at 9:30AM or the SteeleCreek main parking lot at 10:00ish (park opening time) with water, light lunch, andappropriate clothing (will cancel in case of heavy rain/snow that day since hiking forenjoyment). There is a $1/car entrance fee. Please email or call the leader if you have anyquestions and to let me know if you are coming so I have a headcount.Hot Springs - Tanyard Gap Loop, February 18, 2006

Leader: Mary Ellen Ress, 423-349-6536;Rating: A/2/BThis will be about a 11.2 mile loop hike out of Hot Springs, N.C. We will start out by going7.2 miles north on the A.T. from Hot Springs, then 4 miles on the Roundtop Ridge Trailending up back at Hot Springs. There is quite a bit of elevation gain on the A.T. to TanyardGap, making this a moderately difficult hike. Be sure to bring food and water and dressappropriately for a winter hike. Also, since the weather can be unpredictable, it's best to letme know you're coming in case I have to cancel or reschedule the hike due to icy roads,etc. Meet next to the McDonalds in Colonial Heights at 8 AM.Annual Maintenance Dinner - Friday, February 24, 2006We will have our annual dinner to kick off the main maintenance season on Friday,February 24 at the Eastman Lodge.5:30 Social Time6:00 Dinner6:30 Meeting and Open DiscussionMary Cunningham and Ed Oliver have graciously volunteered to provide dinner again. Ifyou have been before, you know you can't beat the quality for the few dollars cost.I will have a packet of information for each maintenance section.Please contact Carl Fritz (423-477-4669 or ) to let me know how many people may comefor dinner, so we can plan accordingly.Little Greenbriar Trail, 900 miler, February 25, 2006Leader: G. S. Luttrell; 423-239-9854,Rating: A/3/BThis hike will involve 1900 feet of climbing the Little Greenbriar Trail, then a 1700 footdescent of the Laurel Falls Trail to Fighting Creek Gap. Total hike distance is 8.3 miles.Contact the hike leader to get further details and reserve a spot.Smokies Dayhike: Rich Mountain Loop, March 4, 2006Leader: Neil Dotson, 423-323-3493Rating: B/2/BI know this risks merely being a running Hiking Club joke, the Hike That Never Was, buthere goes again. Unless erosion has worn it away since I first scheduled this hike, RichMountain is still in the western part of the Smokies, standing on the north side of CadesCove. This 8.5-mile loop uses the Rich Mountain Loop Trail, Indian Grave Gap Trail, andthe Crooked Arm Ridge Trail to make the climb from 1900 feet to 3700 feet and backdown again. This hike is somewhat complementary to Garry Luttrell’s hike a year ago fromCades Cove to the Wye – where he went east from the Crooked Arm trail, this hike willexplore the loop just to the west (see his report and pictures in the January 2005newsletter). With leaves down, we should enjoy more numerous and more expansive views– and each of the three trails we use have advertised views even when the leaves are inplace: views of the main spine of the Smokies to the south, and of Cades Cove lyingbetween. Perhaps there will be snow, underfoot or in the distance. Closer at hand, we willsee the several different forest types, Crooked Arm Falls, the John Oliver Cabin (from early1800’s), and a fire tower site. We will meet in Colonial Heights in the parking lot betweenMcDonalds and the bank at 7:00 a.m. - yes, the hour is early but it is a long drive to theentrance of Cades Cove where the trailhead is, and the days will still be short. Please call

for more information as the time approaches. Watch the weather; dress appropriately for alate winter hike and do bring lunch and adequate water. Depending on the hour we may eatout on the return trip.

Special Activity and Trip Reports (Past)Little Stony Creek, Saturday, January 8, 2006reported by Mary Ellen Ress12 people and one dog made this delightful hike up beautiful Little Stony Creek in theJefferson National Forest, just north of Dungannon, Virginia. The day started out cloudy anda bit nippy, and although there was no ice on the waterfalls, we hiked most of the way insnow and saw plenty of icicles of all sizes hanging from the cliff walls. There are twosignificant waterfalls in the gorge, and many smaller cascades. When we reached the roadat the upper end of the gorge, we turned right for about a half-mile and then on out to aviewpoint looking down into the gorge we had just hiked up. The sun warmed us enough toenjoy lunch on the rocks before we headed back down to the starting point in the HangingRock Recreation Area. Hikers for this approximately seven mile trek were (from left to rightbelow) Rodney Baker, Taylor Pickard, Mike and Tina Dexter (first timers with our club -welcome!), Emily Baker, Rolla Wade, Phyllis Cairnes, Kim Peters, Kat Johnson, Piper thedog, Mary Ellen Ress, and Jack and Jeannette Ralston (not in picture).

Icicles along the trail Emily examines some icicles

The Lower Falls The Upper Falls

Mairzy and Kat along the creek Picking a lunch spot

Lunch Lunchtime view

A.T. Section Maintenance and Special Project Reports(Past)

Name: Carl FritzDate: December 28, 2005Purpose: Cut Hazard Trees and Continue Bridge RepairLocation: Section 8, Shook Branch Recreation to 1 mile north of US321People: Carl Fritz, Ed OliverSummary: We felled six large dead pines in the camping areas north

of US 321. These were hazard trees and a couple would almost certainly have come downthis year. We also cleared two minor blowdowns from the trail. Then we installed lagscrews in the hand rail on the foot bridge at Shook Branch Recreation Area.Name: Carl FritzDate: January 3, 2006Purpose: Trail RehabLocation: Section 20, Just north of Spivey GapPeople: Ken Buchanan, Carl Fritz, Ed Oliver, Bob PeoplesSummary: We continued rehab of trail near Spivey Gap. We conceded to the rain afterlunch. One more trip will complete this rehab. A couple of gentlemen in their seventiespicked this day to take their first hike on the A.T.. They had been promising each other forseveral years and today was the day. They hiked two miles north, returned and startedhiking trail south. They were having a great time inspite of the rain.Name: Joe DeLoachDate: January 7, 2006Purpose: Cut Blowdowns and BriarsLocation: Section 12, 19E to High PointPeople: Craig DeLoach and Joe DeLoachSummary: We set out for a recreational hike but carried a saw which was put to use on a

pine tangle at the bottom of Bishop Hollow, a maple on the old road below High Point, anda few smaller blowdowns and briars. We left two blowdowns on the old road that were easyfor hikers to get through, but would provide some deterrent to ATV's and horses. Trail isclear. The short sidehill relo we put in a few years ago just below High Point is turning into aditch and could use a few waterbars and some rehab. The stile south of Bishop Hollow isgone and the barbwire fence is broken. Lots of bottles and other trash has been dumped atBear Branch Road.Name: Carl FritzDate: January 10, 2006Purpose: Rehab TrailLocation: Section 20, Just north of Spivey GapPeople: Paul Benfield, Bruce Cunningham, Bill Elderbrock, Dave Dunham, Carl Fritz, EdOliver, Bob PeoplesSummary: We completed one rehab section we have been working on by completing thedigging and installing a couple of side logs. We started a small rehab section beginningright at the old road. It was great to have shirt sleeve weather in the middle of January.Name: Old Timers Hiking Club - CB Willis reportingDate: January 11, 2006Purpose: Trail MaintenanceLocation: Section 17, Iron Mountain Gap to Cherry Gap ShelterPeople: Faye Guinn, Howard Guinn, Dave McMillin, Gil Derouen, Daryl Loyd, Tim Shipley,Carl Kincheloe, Mike Hupko, CB WillisSummary: Cleared three trees from the trail and removed other debris as needed.Checked the spring at the shelter where we had re-worked and installed new pipes in thefall. The flow was great; estimated at 2-gallons per minute.Name: Joe DeLoachDate: January 15, 2006Purpose: Cut Blowdowns, Briars and BrushLocation: Section 19, Indian Grave Gap to Nolichucky RiverPeople: Craig DeLoach, Joe DeLoach, and Bill StowellSummary: Craig and Bill started at Indian Grave Gap and worked south. Joe started laterat the outfitter site and worked from there to Chestoa and back. All used hand tools. Wealso cut two large blowdowns with a chainsaw just south of the outfitter site. There are fiveblowdowns on the steep section between Jones Branch and the shelter that will need to becut with a chainsaw.Name: Old Timers Hiking Club - CB Willis reportingDate: January 20, 2006Purpose: Inspect Section and Do Needed MaintenanceLocation: Section 16b, Greasy Creek Gap to Iron Mountain GapPeople: Howard Guinn, Faye Guinn, Mike HupkoSummary: Removed about 10 small downed trees from trail. Identified future work. Needto cut 8 large trees lying across the trail using chainsaw, clean out water bars and dips,replace a step near the Apple Orchard, and rework the spring near the Apple Orchard.Name: Steve PerriDate: January 20, 2006

Purpose: Conference Call with USFS on RelosPeople: Steve Perri, Joe DeLoach, Carl Fritz, Ed OliverSummary: We discussed A.T. relocation responsibilities between the AppalachianRanger District and the Unaka. The Appalachian Ranger District agreed to take the leadon relos between Grassy Ridge and Yellow Mt Gap and the Unaka will take the lead on BigBald. We agreed to time tables to start NEPA's and estimated time for approval vs ourprevious discussion with the Watauga.Name: Joe DeLoachDate: January 22, 2006Purpose: Blowdown Clearing and Trail InspectionLocation: Section 1, Damascus to campsite 2 miles southPeople: Craig DeLoach and Joe DeLoachSummary: The Mt. Rogers A.T. Club hiked from Damascus to the state line on New Year'sDay and reported a large blowdown obstructing the Trail at the campsite about 2 milesfrom Damascus. Their report was accurate; it was lying lengthwise in the Trail and was toobig for hand tools. We cut it out just before a January thunderstorm hit, with lightning a littletoo close for comfort. We cut a few other small trees, none of which were seriousobstructions. The Trail is clear to this point.

We had received another report of mountain bikers using this section and not yielding torequests from local residents to quit biking on the A.T. We spoke to those residents whosaid they thought they had convinced the bikers to stay off the A.T.; they said they wouldinform authorities if this continued. One resident has a class at Emory & Henry thatadopted the section in the Big Laurel Branch Wilderness about ten years ago; and theymay be interested in resuming adoption of a section, possibly this one. We did not noticeadverse impacts from the mountain biking, but it would pose a danger to hikers.Name: Carl FritzDate: January 24, 2006Purpose: Relocate TrailLocation: Section 17, Just south of Iron Mt GapPeople: Paul Benfield, Bruce Cunningham, Bill Elderbrock, Jim Foster, Carl Fritz, BobPeoplesSummary: We did some tidying up of trail dug with students from Watauga College in thefall. We installed almost a dozen steps and a side log at an old road intersection. We hopethe steps will discourage horse traffic.Name: Carl FritzDate: January 24, 2006Purpose: Record Trail Relocation for ArchaeologistLocation: Section 16b, North of apple orchardPeople: Ed Oliver, Mike HupkoSummary: Ed Oliver and Mike Hupko recorded distances, side hill slope and digitalphotographs of trail relocation to submit to U.S. Forest Service.Name: Carl FritzDate: January 25, 2006Purpose: Recruit ASU Students; Arrange Maintenance Trips

Location: Appalachian State UniversityPeople: Ed Oliver, Bob PeoplesSummary: Ed Oliver and Bob Peoples representing TEHCC, and Julie Judkins and TedWilson representing Konnarock Crew, attended a fair at Appalachian State University. Thestudents showed considerable interest in Konnarock crew. There may even be someleader applications. The Appalachian Trail Club arranged three maintenance trips with ourclub for Saturdays in February and March.Name: Joe DeLoachDate: January 26, 2006Purpose: First A.T. Committee Meeting of 2006Location: KingsportPeople: Steve Banks, Bruce Cunningham, Joe DeLoach, Bill Elderbrock, Carl Fritz, MikeHumko, Darrol Nickels, Ed Oliver, Bob Peoples, Steve Perri, Kim Peters, Bill Stowell, JohnThompsonSummary: The Committee recognized Steve Perri's eight years of service. Club officerswere reviewed and are posted on the web site. Trail relocation priorities and timing werereviewed. We support the Scott Booher Tract relocation proposed by the FS and ATC andobserved by Ed and Bruce, but not as a higher priority relative to those on our list throughat least 2010. We'll ask for four weeks of Konnarock time for 2008 and 2009, and requestthat 2006 Konnarock time be fully devoted to the Unaka Mountain relo. We will finish WhiteRocks with Club and student volunteers. We had some suggestions but did not agree on aname for the new shelter and will solicit ideas from the Club. We will also solicit ideas foran appropriate tribute to Ray Hunt. The Osborne Tract handicap-accessible relo has notbeen started; waiting for the ground to freeze. We favor Darrol's proposal to plant moreapple trees at Weedy Gap, as long as the Forest Service does not object due to moredifficult mowing. The A.T. Committee favors taking a Club position against the SmokiesNorth Shore Road similar to that of ATC. Joe will check into this. We'd like to completework on our Local Management Plan revision; Steve Perri will solicit volunteers.Name: Collins ChewDate: January 27, 2006Purpose: Trail MaintenanceLocation: Section 5, Tenn 91 to Iron Mountain ShelterPeople: Janice Alley, Mike Alley, Olin Babb, Charles Beggerow, Lee Bockman, KenBuckhanan, Steve Cathcart, Collins Chew, Anne Cosby, June Donaldson, Carol Dunham,Bob Harvey, Jan Mather, Chuck MatherSummary: The Friday Hikers cleared the A.T. from Cross Mountain to Iron MountainShelter in glorious weather. We cleared all blowdowns except for easy stepovers, clippedbriars, etc. to leave the trail clear and in good shape. Blazes are in good shape, also.Several of the about 10 significant blowdowns were challenging as our bow saw was toosmall to saw all the way through some, and the pruning saw was small also.Photos courtesy of Bob Harvey

The Friday Hikers Maintenance Crew

Ken Buchanan attacks the biggest blowdown of the day - with a bow saw.

The Friday Hikers' outstanding-achievement award is jointly shared this week by Ken andCollins, who labored mightily to improve the trail